A few thoughts to jump start your Friday morning: MULLEN HIRES WESLEY MCGRIFF; WILL CHARLIE STRONG BE NEXT? One down, one to go for Dan Mullen. Mullen filled one vacancy on his defensive staff Thursday with the hire of former Auburn secondary coach Wesley McGriff to coach Florida’s corners. The rumor mill was hot and heavy later in the evening that the vacant safety position would go to former Florida defensive coordinator Charlie Strong, who spent 2020 working as an analyst for Nick Saban at Alabama. Among McGriff’s stops on the road to Gainesville are defensive backs and recruiting coordinator at Baylor (2003-06), defensive backs at Miami (2007-10), secondary coach and recruiting coordinator for James Franklin at Vanderbilt (2011), Ole Miss co-DC and corners coach (2012), New Orleans Saints DB coach (2013-15), Auburn co-DC and DBs (2016), Ole Miss DC and associate head coach (2017-18) and another stop at Auburn (2019-20). McGriff’s undergraduate degree is from Savannah State with a masters in public administration from Georgia Southern. He was a commissioned officer in the Army Reserve from 1990-2001. Football Scoop, which is usually quite reliable when it comes to movement on the coaching trail, says that Strong is a possibility along with Texas safeties coach Chris Ash and Pittsburgh defensive coordinator Cory Sanders. If Strong were hired, it would be the fifth time in his coaching career that he’s worked at Florida and Mullen would be the sixth head coach at UF he’s worked for. Strong started out as a graduate assistant for Charley Pell (1983-94); coached outside linebackers for Galen Hall (1988-89); defensive ends and tackles for Steve Spurrier (1991-94); defensive coordinator for Ron Zook (2003-04); co-defensive coordinator/linebackers (2005-07) and then defensive coordinator/linebackers (2008-09) for Urban Meyer. Strong was also the associate head coach for Spurrier (1994) and the interim head coach for the Peach Bowl after Zook was fired (2004). Strong has a 74-53 overall record as a head coach at Louisville (37-15 from 2010-13), Texas (16-21 from 2014-16) and South Florida (21-16 from 2017-19). From a strictly recruiting standpoint, Strong would be a lights out hire for Mullen. When he worked for Meyer, Strong was a vital recruiting presence in Polk and Hillsborough counties. Among those Strong had a hand in for the recruiting class of 2007, were the Pouncey twins, Chris Rainey and Ahmad Black, all from Lakeland. Strong was also the lead recruiter for Carlos Dunlap from North Charleston, South Carolina. The Pounceys were thought to be FSU locks but the combo of Strong and John Hevesy working with Meyer flipped them to UF where they both made All-America. Black made All-America while Rainey and Dunlap both made All-SEC during their time at UF. Strong has always worked with defensive linemen and linebackers. If hired, could this be a signal there will be additional shuffling of the defensive staff? PITTS (WHO ELSE?) WINS THE MACKEY AWARD Kyle Pitts, who became the ultimate matchup nightmare in 2020 when he caught 43 passes for 770 yards and 12 touchdowns despite 4-1/2 games, won the John Mackey Award as the nation’s top tight end. Those numbers are gaudy, but this gives you an even better understanding of why it was Pitts for the Mackey and second place wasn’t even close. Of the 43 catches Pitts had, some of which were absolutely spectacular, 39 went for first downs. Absorb that for a moment then consider this. Even though he was doubled up nearly every snap and drew opponents’ best defenders, Pitts didn’t drop a single pass. Additionally, Pitts became Florida’s first unanimous first team All-America since Vernon Hargreaves III in 2015. Any questions why Pitts could be among the first five players taken in the NFL Draft? Other award winners Thursday night: In what could be called the Alabama Invitational, six major awards went to five Bama players at the College Football Awards Show. Heisman Trophy winner Devonta Smith won the Biletnikoff Award (best receiver) and the Maxwell Award (nation’s outstanding player) while Mac Jones won the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award, Landon Dickerson won the Rimington Award (best center), Najee Harris won the Doak Walker (best running back) and left tackle Alex Leatherwood won the Outland Trophy (best interior lineman). Tulsa linebacker Zaven Collins won the Bednarik Award (best defensive player), Georgia Tech punter Presley Harvin II won the Ray Guy Award (best punter), Miami’s Jose Borregalas won the Lou Groza Award (best placekicker), and TCU safety Trevon Moehrig won the Jim Thorpe (best DB). NOT A VERY GOOD UK TEAM, BUT IMPORTANT GAME JUST THE SAME This is not the typical Kentucky basketball team the Gators will be facing Saturday evening at the O-Dome (5 p.m., ESPN). Although the Wildcats are off to a 2-0 start in SEC play, they have already endured a six-game losing streak, longest of John Calipari’s UK career. Unlike most Kentucky teams of the Calipari era, this one is the gang that can’t shoot straight. The Wildcats are shooting a dismal 29.9% from the 3-point line. If there is one truly bright spot for the Wildcats it is their ability to defend on the perimeter. Opponents are shooting only 29.3% from the three-point line. Calipari has to be concerned about Kentucky rebounding. The same Vanderbilt team that Florida destroyed on the boards outrebounded Kentucky 42-29 on Wednesday night. Florida comes into the game on the heels of a bad road loss to Alabama Tuesday night, a game in which UF turned in its worst defensive performance of the season. Florida’s inability to keep Alabama from penetrating at will and scoring in the paint (46 points) kept the Gators from ever mounting a serious comeback. On the offensive end, the Gators struggled to find any kind of rhythm. Two key matchups: 6-11 Colin Castleton (11.9 points, 5.3 rebounds) vs. 7-0 Olivier Sarr (11.3 points, 6.0 rebounds): Sarr has been up and down for UK. He’s combined for 38 points and 19 rebounds in the two SEC games, but in the two previous matchups against Louisville and UNC, he combined for three points and five rebounds. Sarr is quite foul prone so Castleton, who is averaging 19 points and 6.3 rebounds in Florida’s three SEC games, will need to go straight at him from the opening whistle. Defensively, Castleton has to hold his ground to prevent Sarr from using a spin move for an up and under shot that draws a lot of fouls. 6-5 Tre Mann (14.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists) vs. 6-3 Davion Mintz (10 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists): Mann is going to score his points. His questions are on the defensive end where he will be going against Mintz, who is 10-21 from the 3-point line in his last four games. Mintz is a catch and shoot type who doesn’t score much off the bounce so Mann should be able to crowd him. SATURDAY’S SEC BASKETBALL GAMES Kentucky (3-6, 2-0 SEC) at FLORIDA (5-2, 2-1 SEC) Alabama (8-3, 3-0 SEC) at Auburn (6-5, 0-3 SEC) Mississippi State (7-4, 2-1 SEC) at Vanderbilt (4-4, 0-2 SEC) #9 Tennessee (8-1, 2-1 SEC) at Texas A&M (6-3, 1-2 SEC) Georgia (7-2, 0-2 SEC) at Arkansas (9-2, 1-2 SEC) LSU (7-2, 2-1 SEC) at #13 Missouri (7-2, 1-2 SEC) South Carolina (3-2, 1-0 SEC) at Ole Miss (6-3, 1-1 SEC), Postponed FOOTBALL IN THE SEC ALABAMA: Alabama had five players who were unanimous All-Americans with Smith, Dickerson, Harris, Leatherwood and corner Patrick Surtain. AUBURN: New HBC Bryan Harsin raided the South Carolina staff to hire offensive coordinator Mike Bobo and O-line coach Will Friend. Bobo was on the South Carolina staff last year, while Friend, who coached at Tennessee last year, was with South Carolina for approximately two weeks. Also added to the new Auburn staff is former Vanderbilt head coach Derek Mason … Defensive back Christian Tuitt declared for the NFL Thursday ... Auburn is on the hook for $1.47 million in severance pay to former offensive coordinator Chad Morris. GEORGIA: Georgia self-reported an NCAA recruiting violation of improper contact with a prospective student-athlete … Defensive back Mark Webb became the latest Bulldog to declare for the NFL Draft. KENTUCKY: Kentucky hired Cincinnati Bengals assistant Jemal Singleton as running backs coach and special teams coordinator. LSU: Linebacker BJ Ojulari will be returning to LSU for 2021, lending hope in Baton Rouge that high school teammate tight end Arik Gilbert might reconsider transferring and return to LSU … New offensive coordinator Jake Peetz will have a starting salary of $1.2 million, rising to $1.3 million for 2022. New passing game coordinator DJ Mangas is starting out at $400,000 per year. MISSISSIPPI STATE: Running back Lee Witherspoon has put his name in the NCAA transfer portal … Defensive lineman Marquiss Spencer is leaving for the NFL. MISSOURI: Defensive back Adam Sparks, who opted out of Mizzou at midseason, has placed his name in the transfer portal … Former defensive coordinator Ryan Walters owes Mizzou a $300,000 buyout after joining the Illinois staff. SOUTH CAROLINA: One day after losing offensive coordinator Mike Bobo to Auburn, Shane Beamer landed his replacement from the NFL. The new OC is Marcus Satterfield, formerly the offensive coordinator at Temple and most recently the O-line coach with the Carolina Panthers. TENNESSEE: ESPN has joined Football Scoop in stating that Jeremy Pruitt isn’t being allowed to hire new staff or renew contracts of current assistant coaches … Former Virginia Tech quarterback Hendon Hooker, who threw for 1,339 yards and nine touchdowns while rushing for 620 yards and nine TDs, will transfer to the Vols. TEXAS A&M: Quarterback Kellen Mond ended speculation that he might return for another season when he declared for the NFL Draft. Mond, who threw for 71 touchdowns and ran for 22 in his A&M career, is projected to go no higher than third or fourth round in the draft. NON-SEC FOOTBALL STUFF Rumors have been swirling that Ohio State is having Covid-19 problems that could lead to a one-week postponement of Monday night’s national championship game with Alabama. However, Ohio State coach Ryan Day says the Buckeyes will have “plenty of players” available for the game. Quarterback Justin Fields, who suffered an injury to his rib area against Clemson, says he will be ready to go against Alabama. Wasn’t it about two months ago that Jim Harbaugh and Michigan were negotiating an amicable divorce? Apparently they have kissed and made up because Harbaugh has a new 5-year deal but at only $4 million per year, which is half what he has been making. Apparently, the new deal is loaded up with incentives that could make up the lost $4 million. New Texas coach Steve Sarkisian is making a protracted effort to lure LSU corners coach and recruiting coordinator Corey Raymond to his new staff in Austin. ONE LAST PITHY THOUGHT: The only concern I have about Alabama in Monday night’s national championship game with Ohio State is pressure. An Alabama win not only caps off an unbeaten season, but any win with a 10-point or greater differential will have the experts proclaiming this as one of the greatest teams – at least from an offensive standpoint – in college football history. As if that isn’t pressure enough, a win would give Nick Saban a record seventh national championship and tie Bama legend Bear Bryant for the most in school history (6). Finally, there is the pressure of winning with an offensive coordinator (Steve Sarkisian) who has spent the last few days putting together a coaching staff for his new gig at Texas. If Ohio State comes into the game feeling loose with an us against the world mentality, this could get interesting, especially if Alabama is the slightest bit tight from the outset.

Is Kyle Pitts the greatest tight end in Florida Gators history? The numbers alone would seem to say so. The junior was named the winner of the Mackey Award on Thursday night, annually awarded to the nation’s best tight end, something he set out to do after being left off the finalist list following his sophomore (2019) season. “Not winning it last year kinda put a chip on my shoulder,” Pitts admitted during the ESPN broadcast of the College Football Awards Show. “That was something I took into the offseason. That was something I wrote in my room, in my locker as something I have to win this year." He also became the first tight end in college football history to be nominated for the Biletnikoff Award, given to the nation’s best receiver (which was won by Alabama’s DeVonta Smith). Pitts was the first tight end ever to be named a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award, the first Gator to be named a finalist since Jabar Gaffney in 2001 and the fifth Gator overall to be named a finalist joining Gaffney (2001), Jacquez Green (1997), Reidel Anthony (1996) and Jack Jackson (1994). Pitts also became the first unanimous first-team All-American since Vernon Hargreaves III in 2015. Both Pitts and Hargreaves were named AFCA, AP, FWAA, Sporting News and Walter Camp First Team All-Americans. Pitts quickly became the best tight end and one of the top pass catchers in the country this season with 43 receptions, 770 yards and 12 touchdowns—and this despite missing three games with injury. He had no drops on any target. Pitts’ 12 receiving touchdowns this season were the second-highest total by a tight end in Southeastern Conference history. Vanderbilt’s Allama Matthews (14 in 1982) holds the SEC record. His 770 yards this year ties Kirk Kirkpatrick (1990) for second on Florida’s single-season record list for receiving yards by a tight end. He led the trio of himself, Trevon Grimes and Kadarius Toney that gave UF the only trio in the country with at least nine touchdowns and more than 500 yards a piece. The junior—who has declared for the NFL Draft—is the first tight end in Gators history and the eighth FBS tight end in the last five years (including 2020) with three games of 100-plus receiving yards in the same season. His receiving prowess is incredible and also an indication of how offenses are changing. Tight ends have always been an interesting tool for coaches, given their ability to both block and pass catch. But the latter has always been used more as a gimmick to keep defenses on their toes as opposed to a legitimate threat. But Kyle Pitts…he was a legitimate threat. As mentioned, he never dropped a pass this season. His catches often came in double if not triple coverage. Teams knew what they had to do to stop him and still couldn’t. “He’s kind of a unicorn,” remarked Head Coach Dan Mullen at the beginning of the season. “So unless you have a unicorn on defense to match the unicorn on offense – you’ve got to have a guy that, there’s not a lot of them out there, they’re kind of very, very rare to ever see one – do you have a 6-foot-4, 240-pound linebacker than can run with him?” Pitts commented on ESPN’s presentation of the awards show on Thursday that linebackers were his favorite position to match up against because he knew they would’t be able to guard him. But that’s the only answer most defenses had. Corners aren’t typically the size or trained to match up against a big bodied tight end. But linebackers couldn’t keep up with the speed and litheness Pitts displayed. Despite his tremendous pass catching ability, after losing out on the Mackey last year, Pitts knew he needed to work on every aspect of his game if he wanted to be an all-around tight end. On Thursday night, Larry Scott—Pitts former tight end coach at Florida and current head coach at Howard University—tweeted his recollection of those conversations. “Remember all the long conversations about how bad you wanted this moment and the work it would take to get here. Congratulations you earned it. So proud of the player you’re becoming, but more importantly the man. The journey has just started. Stay process driven and let god lead.” And back at the beginning of September, Tim Brewster—Pitts tight end coach with the Gators this past season—gave reporters a glimpse into the work his star pupil was putting in to become the best of the best. “We’re very, very fortunate to have a guy like Kyle Pitts. I coached a bunch of really good tight ends, had the pleasure of helping development Antonio Gates. And the thing about Kyle Pitts that I absolutely love is this guy’s a tough guy. I mean, this guy’s a hard-nosed, physical, tough guy. “He has embraced the mentality that I’m bringing to the room, truly trying to be a true three-down tight end, a guy that can block people on first and second down, a guy that can go make big-time, third-down catches. There’s nothing that this guy can’t do now. I’m going to tell you what: there’s talk about him being a big wide receiver, this and that. I’m going to tell you: this guy is a complete guy.” Before the season kicked off against Ole Miss, Pitts warned opponents that he had evolved his game. “I knew people questioned, so I want to make sure that starting Saturday there will be no questions about that…because I came from receiver, that that’s the first thing they think. But I came here as a tight end, and some things happened my freshman year where Coach Mullen didn’t want to redshirt me, so he gave me the chance to still touch the field a little bit and play. So, when I came back to tight end, people kind of thought I wasn’t really ready for that, but, I would say the past is the past and this year will be totally different.” And as the season wore on, it became apparent his work had paid off, something Mullen noticed right away. “He’s got tremendous athletic ability to go catch the ball, and as I think everybody saw, he’s really developed much better as a blocker this offseason. When you combine those things defensively, who do you put on him?” Teams had no answer, leaving us with an even bigger question, one posed at the top. Is Kyle Pitts the best tight end in Florida Gators history? As UAA noted, Pitts is the second tight end in school history to win the Mackey Award, joining a Gators tight end who won the award in 2009. Ben Troupe (2003) and Jake McGee (2015) were named finalists in their respective years. The Florida Gators athletic program infamously refers to a certain past player as “a former Gators tight end from 2007-2009.” It’s almost become a joke, the complete unwillingness to say Aaron Hernandez’s name, but also understandable given the—you know—triple homicide. But this past season, the UAA has repeatedly had to refer to “a former Gators tight end” as another player—Pitts—continued to near, tie and then surpass Hernandez’s records. So in a sense, perhaps that’s another accomplishment to add to what has become a long list in Pitts accolades; he usurped the name Florida won’t even mention, meaning they can now move on and only refer to Kyle Pitts when referencing Gator greats. Someone one day will eventually come along and break Kyle Pitts’ records. They’re made to be broken. But that day is likely far off. And at least for this day, we can fairly confidently say—in more ways than one—that Kyle Pitts is the greatest tight end in Florida Gators history.

My dad is a plumber. It’s not the most glamorous occupation, but I’ve learned a lot in the years of watching my dad repair my family members’ plumbing woes. And let me tell you, it’s all about leak detection. You decide to look into the problem once there’s proof there’s a problem – typically a small puddle of water. But that small puddle of water isn’t simply a collection of rogue water drops. Instead, it’s typically indicative of a bigger issue. The pipeline from Vanguard High School to Gainesville has busted. On the exterior, it looks like the Gators are swinging and missing on players from arguably the most talent-rich football school in Marion County. But beneath the surface, water is pooling. The Vanguard Knights produced two four-star recruits for the 2021 recruiting cycle: Trevonte Rucker, a 6-foot wide receiver, and Bryce Langston, a 6-foot-3 defensive end. Both Rucker and Langston spent time committed to the Florida Gators, and spent even more time seriously entertaining their offers from Florida. Rucker and Langston both committed to Florida as freshmen before backing off their pledges after the Jaylon Jones and Chris Steele incident. Rucker went on to recommit to Florida in February of 2020, where he stayed true to the Gators up until this week when he committed to play for Deion Sanders at Jackson State University in Jackson, Mississippi. Meanwhile, Bryce Langston committed and has reportedly signed with the LSU Tigers. It appears Florida will go 0-for-2 on Vanguard prospects in 2020. And 0-for-3 on Vanguard prospects in the past two recruiting cycles. In the 2020 recruiting cycle, Leonard Manuel was committed to the Gators before falling off the side of the earth... kinda. Manuel was a four-star wide receiver that Florida was chasing, until the chase seemingly ceased. Manuel also packed his bags and left Vanguard in the middle of the football season before going on to play just weeks later at Stranahan High School in Ft. Lauderdale. Manuel later posted a picture of a diploma from West Port High School, another Ocala-area school That tweet has since been deleted from Manuel’s Twitter. There was a lot of speculation from recruiting sources and the Gators’ fanbase that Manuel would never qualify academically at Florida. To this day, Manuel, who was at one time a highly regarded recruit, doesn’t play college football anywhere. On the other hand, Rucker and Langston will both start their college careers this coming fall with Rucker heading to Jackson, and Langston bound for Baton Rouge. But what does that say about Florida’s recruiting efforts? Not much. Bryce Langston really might have been a swing and a miss. The Vanguard defensive end flew under the radar for much of his recruitment, but both the Gators and the Tigers stayed at the top of Langston’s list. But the Gators humiliating loss to LSU on December 12 seemed as though it might have been the deciding factor for Langston. Meanwhile, Trevonte Rucker’s flip to Jackson State came as a shock. Rucker had been loyally committed to Florida for a long time. “I mean, I was committed a long time, you’re correct,” Rucker said. “But then I felt the vibe they were giving me and they weren’t real like I thought they were.” Exactly what gave Rucker this impression is unclear, however, it’s obvious that friction existed between Rucker and the Florida Gators football program prior to Rucker’s flip. When asked about what he thought about some of Florida’s fanbase questioning his academic eligibility, Rucker was quick to fire back. “Man, they are trolls,” Rucker said. “I don’t pay attention to them. All of that is motivation. Them saying that makes me work even harder. So you tell them this: The more they keep talking, the more I’m going to keep working.” And while Trevonte Rucker continues to work in spite of his critics, it might be time that Florida fans stop holding their breath for Vanguard prospects. For whatever reason, [insert your imagination here], it never works out in the end. And whether the Vanguard to Gainesville pipeline has actually busted, like I believe it might have, or whether it’s just sprung a tiny leak, sometimes fans need to dig a little deeper to find it.

A few thoughts to jump start your Thursday morning: Bet the farm that Dan Mullen is going to be the football coach at the University of Florida next year. The flirtation with the National Football League was apparently just a chance to kick the tires for both Mullen and the NFL. There have been some now-debunked reports that Mullen either interviewed with or was scheduled to interview with the Atlanta Falcons. Nothing has materialized with speculation that the New York Jets or a handful of other NFL teams have a strong interest, either. Some of that could be because all the NFL teams are bound by the Rooney Rule and won’t be getting serious about a new hire until they’ve had employment chats with at least one minority candidate. Or it could a sure sign that either Mullen or the NFL has said thanks for the interest but not at this time. Meanwhile, Mullen is going about his daily business gauging what Florida players have planned for the future. Linebacker James Houston IV announced he’s entered the transfer portal. Three other seniors will be back and at least three others seem to be leaning toward returning. Others could be announcing they will return in the next couple of days. Penn State nose tackle Antonio Shelton will be enrolling as a grad transfer and there are several others from various institutions that have let it be known they’re available if Florida wants them. It is anticipated that Mullen may bring in another three or four, one of which could be an experienced wide receiver. With placekicker Evan McPherson declaring for the NFL Draft, it’s highly likely Mullen will be exploring possibilities in the transfer portal, where the hot names are Christian Zendejas of Arizona State and Chase McGrath of Southern Cal. Zendejas, who only had four field goal attempts in Arizona State’s four 2020 games, was 23-27 in 2019. McGrath was 32-42 on field goal attempts at USC from 2017-19 but didn’t kick in 2020 due to tendinitis in his knee. On the coaching front, the reported “done deal” for Mullen to hire former South Carolina defensive coordinator Travaris Robinson as his corners coach seems to have hit the skids with at least one site saying it’s a no-go for Florida. There is talk heating on a couple of fronts in Texas that Longhorns’ safeties coach Chris Ash, formerly the head coach at Rutgers and Ohio State defensive coordinator under Urban Meyer, will be coming to Florida as co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach. IN HERE … Shelton is 6-2, 327 and excellent at plugging the middle so that linebackers can clean up behind him. He had 14 tackles in 2020 with 3.5 sacks, two quarterback hurries and a forced fumble. The elusive Lamar Goods, all 6-2 and 335 pounds of him, will be back in school on Monday. From Jason Higdon … Seniors Rick Wells, Jean Delance, Stewart Reese are all yes. It’s also possible that Ventrell Miller, Jeremiah Moon and Marlon Dunlap will return. OUTTA HERE … Houston has put his name in the NCAA transfer portal after a 37-tackle season in 2020. Houston had 103 tackles for his three-year Florida career with 4.5 sacks and four forced fumbles. From Jason Higdon … Stone Forsythe, Brett Heggie, Shawn Davis, Brad Stewart and Donovan Stiner. Forsythe is probably an NFL mid-round draft pick. Heggie had a very solid year at center and he can play both guard positions. He’ll need a great pro day to be anything more than a sixth or seventh rounder. Davis has his problems in man coverage but he’s decent going after the ball in a zone. Free agency for him. Like everyone in the Florida secondary, Stewart was far too inconsistent. Unless he has a great combine he’s a free agent. Stiner might transfer somewhere if he intends to play football in 2021. FOOTBALL IN THE SEC ALABAMA: Ohio State has another Alabama weapon to worry about on Monday. Jaylen Waddle, who broke an ankle against Tennessee back in October, is practicing and looking very good. In the five games he played before his injury, Waddle caught 25 passes for 557 yards (22.28 per catch) for four touchdowns. In his Alabama career he has 103 catches for 1,965 yards and 17 touchdowns, three punt returns for touchdowns and one kickoff return for a TD. ARKANSAS: The Razorbacks got a transfer from offensive tackle Ty’kieast Crawford, a former 4-star who spent his freshman season at Charlotte ... Former Arkansas wide receiver Shamar Nash is transferring to Memphis. AUBURN: Football Scoop is reporting that former Vanderbilt head coach Derek Mason will be named defensive coordinator for Bryan Harsin’s new staff. Boise State co-defensive coordinator Spencer Danielson will be joining the defensive line coach ... Harsin is reportedly making a play to lure South Carolina offensive coordinator to call plays at Auburn … Starting safety Smoke Monday will return in 2021. He had 73 tackles and two interceptions in 2020. GEORGIA: Corner Tyson Campbell is leaving early for the NFL … Linebacker Nakobe Dean will miss spring practice after surgery to repair a torn labrum. Dean led Georgia with 71 tackles in 2020 ... Josh Brooks, who was once Mark Richt’s director of football operations and has been working for Greg Magarity as the senior deputy AD, has been promoted to athletic director. Magarity, formerly the associate AD at Florida, retired recently but has resurfaced as the director of the Gator Bowl. KENTUCKY: Backup quarterback Nick Scalzo, a former 3-star recruit, is the second Kentucky quarterback to put his name in the transfer portal this week. Earlier starter Terry Wilson elected to transfer out. LSU: Jake Peetz and DJ Mangus, who both worked for former LSU offensive guru Joe Brady with the NFL Carolina Panthers in 2020, will be in charge of the offense in Baton Rouge in 2020. Peetz, who has 10 years experience coaching in the NFL, will be the offensive coordinator while Mangus, who worked as an analyst for Brady during LSU’s national championship run in 2019, will be the passing game coordinator. Peetz worked in 2013 and again in 2018 as an analyst for Nick Saban at Alabama. MISSISSIPPI STATE: Cam Gardner, who caught 12 passes for 110 yards in 2020, has put his name in the transfer portal. MISSOURI: The on-again, off-again news regarding defensive coordinator Ryan Walters is off-again, as in he’s leaving for Illinois where he will be Bret Bielema’s defensive coordinator. OLE MISS: Linebacker MoMo Sango is the latest Ole Miss defender to announce he will be returning for 2021 ... Defensive back Jay Stanley is transferring to Southern Miss. SOUTH CAROLINA: New HBC Shane Beamer is trying to lure Mississippi State’s Zach Arnett to become his defensive coordinator. TENNESSEE: ESPN college football writer Chris Low is thinking Jeremy Pruitt’s days at UT might be numbered. Speaking on a Nashville radio show Wednesday, Low said, “It will be difficult for him to be the head football coach.” All seven of the Vols’ losses in 2020 were by 11 or more points. The 3-7 record is compounded by potential NCAA violations. TEXAS A&M: Starting center Ryan McCollum is leaving for the NFL … Linebacker Ikenna Okeke has put his name in the transfer portal. VANDERBILT: Norval McKenzie is leaving Louisville to join Clark Lea’s staff as the running backs coach. BASKETBALL IN THE SEC Tennessee was outshot from the field overall and from the 3-point line by Arkansas but the Vols still beat the Razorbacks 78-74 Wednesday night because they shot 26 free throws and Arkansas shot only 10. Such is life on the road in the SEC. Auburn is still waiting for the NCAA to rule on the eligibility of 5-star point guard Sharife Cooper, who has missed 10 games and 72 days of practice. In winning their second straight SEC game Tuesday night, Kentucky got strong performances from transfers Olivier Sarr and Jacob Toppin. Sarr scored 24 points in the win over Vanderbilt while Toppin’s second half defense on Vandy star Scottie Pippen Jr. helped the Wildcats come from behind to get the win. WEDNESDAY’S SEC BASKETBALL RESULTS #9 Tennessee (8-1, 2-1SEC) 79, Arkansas (9-2, 1-2 SEC) 74 LSU (7-2, 2-1 SEC) 94, Georgia (7-2, 0-2 SEC) 92, OT Ole Miss (6-3, 1-1 SEC) 72, Auburn (6-5, 0-3 SEC) 61 South Carolina (3-2, 1-0 SEC) 78, Texas A&M (6-3, 1-2 SEC) 54 SATURDAY’S SEC GAMES Kentucky (3-6, 2-0 SEC) at FLORIDA (5-2, 2-1 SEC) Alabama (8-3, 3-0 SEC) at Auburn (6-5, 0-3 SEC) Mississippi State (7-4, 2-1 SEC) at Vanderbilt (4-4, 0-2 SEC) #9 Tennessee (8-1, 2-1 SEC) at Texas A&M (6-3, 1-2 SEC) Georgia (7-2, 0-2 SEC) at Arkansas (9-2, 1-2 SEC) South Carolina (3-2, 1-0 SEC) at Ole Miss (6-3, 1-1 SEC) LSU (7-2, 2-1 SEC) at #13 Missouri (7-2, 1-2 SEC) FOOTBALL ELSEWHERE BESIDES THE SEC Big shock. Clemson quarterback and Heisman Trophy runner-up Trevor Lawrence has declared for the NFL where he is expected to be the #1 pick of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Jed Fisch, formerly a GA for Steve Spurrier at Florida and now the head coach at Arizona, will hire Don Brown as his defensive coordinator. Brown is formerly the defensive coordinator for Steve Addazio at Boston College and Jim Harbaugh at Michigan. Memphis quarterback Brady White is the winner of the Campbell Trophy, awarded to the nation’s top football scholar-athlete. White threw for 3,380 yards and 31 touchdowns in 2020 while completing work for his masters degree and starting doctoral studies. Former Rutgers head coach and current Alabama assistant Kyle Flood will join Steve Sarkisian’s Texas staff to coach the offensive line. In addition to working together the last two years at Alabama, Flood was an O-line assistant in 2017-18 when Sarkisian was the offensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons. This is weirdness. One day after Ryan Pugh was announced as Baylor’s new offensive line coach, it was announced Pugh won’t be coming after all. HBC Dave Aranda said, “We are moving in a different direction … We wish Ryan well in his future endeavors.” No reason was given for the abrupt about face. FROM MICHAEL ROSENBERG OF SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Writing about how the global pandemic has exposed the NCAA and college athletics for their hypocrisy: “College sports will change radically over the next 20 years. The question is how? Rules allowing athletes to profit off their names, images and likenesses are coming – rules that are both fair and overdue. But if 2020 is any indication, then without even the pretense of amateurism, athletic departments will continue to detach themselves from the central mission of their schools. “The NCAA’s longtime model of using football and men’s basketball to fund other sports was always legally and morally suspect. But this pandemic-altered year showed it was also just a cover. Football will get bigger, because that’s what the marketplace demands. Everything else – rivalries, traditions, nonrevenue sports, academics – will fit around that fundamental truth.” ONE LAST PITHY COMMENT: There’s that old saying “You don’t tug on Superman’s cape.” Washington Football Team defensive end Chase Young obviously didn’t get the message. He’s not backing down from his on camera rant, “Tom Brady, Tom Brady, I’m coming! I want Tom! I want Tom!” Let’s see. Young, who is a rookie, had 7.5 sacks this year. Young was all of two years old when Brady threw his first NFL touchdown pass. Twenty years later he’s thrown another 580 TDPs including 40 this season. Somehow I doubt Tom is sweating profusely over the thought that Chase Young would like to sack him.

A few thoughts to jump start your Wednesday morning: TRASK HAD THE STATS, JUST NOT ENOUGH WINS Kyle Trask had what can only be described as a dream season with 4,125 passing yards and 43 touchdown passes, both records at the University of Florida, which has produced three Heisman Trophy quarterbacks. Trask had the stats to get a statue alongside Steve Spurrier, Danny Wuerffel and Tim Tebow. What he didn’t have was enough wins to mount a serious challenge to 2020 Heisman winner Devonta Smith, who outpolled second place finisher Trevor Lawrence of Clemson by nearly 700 points to become Alabama’s third winner of the big trophy since 2009. Alabama QB Mac Jones finished third while Trask finished a distant fourth, more than 1,100 votes behind Smith. Smith also had the kind of stats that wow Heisman voters as he leads the country in receptions (105), receiving yards (1,641) and touchdown catches (20), numbers that are likely to get better when Alabama faces Ohio State in the national championship game on Monday. He also has the advantage of being the best player on the nation’s best team that is 12-0. That’s not taking away anything from the kind of season Smith turned in. It’s just a fact that players with the best stats on the best teams have a leg up when it comes to Heisman voting. Smith was so good that it didn’t matter that teammates Jones and running back Najee Harris (finished fifth) had Heisman-worthy seasons and stats – Jones threw for 4,036 yards and 36 touchdowns; Harris rushed for 1,387 and leads the nation with 27 touchdowns, 24 on the ground. The Gators finished 2020 with an 8-4 record. Forget the Cotton Bowl, a game UF lost with its three leading receivers opting out. It’s the other 11 games that were the deciding factors in Trask’s Heisman bid. The Gators were one possession away from a win in regular season losses to Texas A&M and LSU and an SEC Championship Game loss to Alabama. Win those three games and it’s Trask who’s the best player on the nation’s best team. The four losses and a fourth place finish in the Heisman voting take nothing away from Trask’s remarkable story. That he even made the Heisman finalists is almost a fairytale for an outstanding young man who had the patience and loyalty to wait his turn even if it meant spending his entire collegiate career the same way he spent his high school career – as a backup. Backup is in Trask’s future. He will probably apprentice for awhile after he is selected in National Football League Draft – most likely in the lower half of the first round to the middle of the second – but if pro football doesn’t work out he has the right kind of backup plan for the future in the form of a masters degree in sports management from the University of Florida. THE MULLEN WATCH: DAY TWO There are more rumors that Mullen met with the Atlanta Falcons but if it happened, it was in Gainesville. There are accurate reports that Mullen spent the day talking with players who are making decisions about returning for another year or leaving either as graduates, transfers or for the NFL Draft. This is another sign that Mullen isn’t planning to leave for the NFL but instead will return to Florida for his fourth season. Currently there are six NFL openings and CBSSports.com doesn’t have Mullen listed among the top three candidates for any of them. While continuing exit interviews the remainder of the week, it’s likely that Mullen will focus in on replacements for departed secondary coaches Ron English and Torian Gray. Former Florida defensive backs assistant and South Carolina defensive coordinator Travaris Robinson continues to be a favorite for one of the openings. A new name that has popped into the discussion is Texas defensive coordinator Chris Ash, formerly the head coach at Rutgers and Urban Meyer’s defensive coordinator in 2014-15 at Ohio State. Ash spent a couple of years (2012-13) as Bret Bielema’s defensive coordinator at Arkansas. EVAN MCPHERSON DECLARES FOR NFL DRAFT About the only way to describe McPherson’s decision to enter the NFL Draft is shocking. While he has had a great collegiate career through three seasons – 51-60 on field goals and 149-150 on extra points – McPherson isn’t likely to be selected and if some team does take him, it’s almost certain to be in the last two rounds. He leaves Florida with 302 career points, which ranks fourth on the school’s all-time list. BAD NIGHT IN TUSCALOOSA FOR FLORIDA BASKETBALL The Gators (5-2, 2-1 SEC) had a 13-12 lead over Alabama (8-3, 3-0 SEC) at the 13:23 mark of the first half when second-leading scorer Scottie Lewis went to the bench with his second foul. Lewis is also Florida’s best one-on-one defender so his absence the rest of the first half was felt in a big way on both ends of the floor. When he returned to the game in the second half, Lewis was unable to get into any kind of rhythm and this is not a Florida team that is capable of playing well when one of its key players is good for only two points and a single rebound in 20 minutes of playing time. Lewis isn’t the only Gator who had a night to forget. Other than Tyree Appleby, who scored 18 off the bench, it was a bad night as Florida suffered its first SEC loss, 86-71, to an Alabama team that outplayed UF in nearly every phase but never so obvious as in the paint, where the Tide outscored the Gators 46-28 with 21 layups compared to just seven for Florida. Florida defenders seemed almost helpless to stop Alabama from penetrating at will to get any shot they wanted. The Gators struggled to get clean looks from the outside and had all sorts of problems in the paint on the offensive end. “We just came out slow,” said Florida’s Tre Mann. “We weren’t paying attention to details that we talked about all week in practice. We knew we had to box out and hit them and rebound and we just didn’t. They took advantage of it, so you know.” Following Appleby in the Florida scoring column were Colin Castleton (13 points, game-high eight rebounds), and Noah Locke (11 points, 3-6 on 3-pointers, and Tre Mann (11 points, 2-4 on 3-pointers, six rebounds and six assists). The Gators will return to the friendly confines of the O-Dome Saturday when Kentucky (3-6, 2-0 SEC) comes to town, fresh off a 77-74 win over Vanderbilt. SEC TUESDAY NIGHT BASKETBALL SCORES Alabama (8-3, 3-0 SEC) 86, FLORIDA (5-2, 2-1 SEC) 71 Kentucky (3-6, 2-0 SEC) 77, Vanderbilt (4-4, 0-2 SEC) 74 Mississippi State (7-4, 2-12 SEC) 78, #13 Missouri (7-2, 1-2 SEC) 63 WEDNESDAY NIGHT SEC SCHEDULE Arkansas (9-1, 1-1 SEC) at #9 Tennessee (7-1, 1-1 SEC) Georgia (7-1, 0-1 SEC) at LSU (6-2, 1-1 SEC) Texas A&M (6-2, 1-1 SEC) at South Carolina (2-2, 0-0 SEC) Auburn (6-4, 0-2 SEC) at Ole Miss (5-3, 0-1 SEC) FOOTBALL STUFF IN THE SEC ALABAMA: Kristen Saban Setas, Nick Saban’s daughter, is walking back a tweet earlier in the day that questioned the validity of COVID-19 reports coming out of Ohio State. The tweet read, “If you’re not confident to play then SAY IT. I call BS on the COVID cases. They’re just worried about their QB and want him to have time to heal. If he’s hurt put in your backup. You didn’t see us postpone the rest of the season to wait on [Jaylen] Waddle.” ARKANSAS: Defensive coordinator Barry Odom, who was considered for the DC job at Texas, will be back with Arkansas in 2021. AUBURN: Wide receiver Eli Stove has declared for the NFL. New HBC Bryan Harsin will be minus all three of Auburn’s leading receivers as Seth Williams and Anthony Schwarz have already declared for the NFL. GEORGIA: Running back James Cook and defensive lineman Devonte Wyatt will be back for the 2021 season. Gone, however, is wide receiver Matt Landers, who has placed his name in the NCAA transfer portal. LSU: Tight end Arik Gilbert is official in the NCAA transfer portal … A Louisiana judge has ruled that LSU must turn over to USA Today an unredacted police report that accuses former running back Derrius Guice of rape. MISSISSIPPI STATE: Linebacker Erroll Thompson, who led the Bulldogs with 95 tackles, has declared for the NFL Draft. OLE MISS: Special teams coordinator Blake Gideon is leaving for Steve Sarkisian’s staff at Texas … Ole Miss has given a contract extension to offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Jeff Lebby ... Defensive back Jay Stanley has placed his name in the transfer portal. SOUTH CAROLINA: Defensive lineman Keir Thomas has put his name in the transfer portal. TENNESSEE: The Vols lost two of their best players Tuesday when running back Ty Chandler entered the transfer portal and corner Bryce Thompson declared for the NFL Draft. Chandler has rushed for 2,046 yards and 13 touchdowns while catching 58 passes for 465 yards and three TDs. TEXAS A&M: Left tackle Dan Moore Jr. has declared for the NFL Draft. FINAL THOUGHTS ABOUT EXPANDING THE COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF The more I think about it, the more I believe if college football is to rebound from the financial disaster that is the pandemic year of 2020 it will have to expand the College Football Playoff to a minimum of eight teams. Yes, there is a contract with ESPN through 2024 for a four-team playoff, but contracts were made to be broken and if ESPN intends to hold onto the playoff beyond 2024, it better be ready to start all over again. For one thing, the number of kids opting out rather than play in non-playoff bowl games is going to increase unless there is expansion which means ESPN is going to see advertising dollars for non-playoff game broadcasts dry up. Then there is the fact that in a four-team playoff at least one of the Power Five leagues sees its champion passed over. Usually it’s the Pac-12. How much longer can ESPN afford to cut out the bulk of the viewing audience west of Texas? That is what will continue happening unless there is expansion that will assure the Pac-12 its champion is in. The Pac-12 was once one of the more dominant college football conferences, but that has changed since the advent of the College Football Playoff. Only two Pac-12 teams – Oregon in 2014 and 2016 Washington – have made the final four. That might have something to do with the best players from west of Texas gravitating in increasing numbers to leagues whose champions make the playoff. You want proof? The top three quarterbacks in the country in the recruiting class of 2020 were Bryce Young (Santa Ana, CA), DJ Uiagalelei (Bellflower, CA) and CJ Stroud (Rancho Cucamonga, CA). Young went to Alabama, Uiagalelei to Clemson and Stroud to Ohio State. Alabama and Ohio State are in the national championship game while Clemson lost to Ohio State in the semifinals. Expand the playoffs so the Pac-12 has a chance to at least get its champion in and it’s probable that some of these kids who are heading east will elect to stay closer to home. One of the great things about March Madness is there is always a chance that Cinderella will surpass all expectations and make a deep run. Maybe even someday a team from absolutely nowhere will one-up the Butler teams of 2010 and 2011 that made it to the NCAA championship game only to see the clock strike midnight. College football needs to add the Cinderella element to the playoff by expanding to at least eight teams, one of which is the best from the Group of Five. Make it a 16-team playoff and it would be possible to have every conference champ from both the Power Five and Group of Five plus wild cards. Play all first round games on campus in an eight-team playoff. Play the first two rounds on campus in a 16-game tournament. Expand and the playoff becomes something other than the Bama-Clemson-Ohio State invitational with either Oklahoma or Notre Dame filling in the fourth spot. Expand and Cinderella comes into play. Expand and the interest generated brings in far more money than a four-team invitational ever did. It’s time to do it.

On some level we knew Kyle Trask wasn’t winning the 2020 Heisman Trophy on Tuesday night. One of four finalist, Trask was up against Alabama quarterback Mac Jones and receiver DeVonta Smith, along with Clemson Tigers quarterback Trevor Lawrence. As the season wore on, the Smith for Heisman train picked up speed and finally arrived at its destination in the virtual ceremony early Tuesday evening as Smith became the first receiver since Desmond Howard (1991) to lift the bronze award. All to often in recent years, the award goes to the player on the best team. There are notable exceptions of course; Lamar Jackson on Louisville, Marcus Mariota of Oregon, Robert Griffin III of Baylor. But the three losses on Florida’s schedule before Heisman votes were due were damning in a year two of the other candidates were on an undefeated team and the third was on a team that had only one loss and it had come with said player sidelined. Yet there was little doubt he deserved to be a finalist and for that matter, in the thick of the race. Trask was on a historic pace during a year with fewer games and more uncertainty than ever before. This is a small sampling of the eye popping statistics Trask put up in 2020. 46 – Total Touchdowns Four more than any other FBS player in 2020 Tied for sixth on the SEC single-season record list Second only to Tim Tebow’s 55 in 2007 on Florida’s single-season record list 43 – Passing Touchdowns Seven more than any other FBS player in 2020 Tied for third on the SEC single-season record list, trailing only Missouri’s Drew Lock (44 in 13 games in 2017) and LSU’s Joe Burrow (60 in 15 games in 2019) Broke Danny Wuerffel’s school record of 39 from his 12-game 1996 season (although bowl stats were not counted for records prior to 2002, Trask also eclipsed Wuerffel’s bowl-adjusted season total of 42) 4,283 – Passing Yards Led all FBS players by 247 yards Ranks second on the SEC single-season record list, only trailing LSU’s Joe Burrow (5,671 in 15 games in 2019) Marks the fifth 4,000-yard passing season in SEC history Broke Rex Grossman’s school record of 3,896 from his 11-game 2001 season (although bowl stats were not included, Trask also eclipsed Grossman’s bowl-adjusted total of 4,144) 356.9 – Passing Yards Per Game Ranked second nationally and led the third-ranked passer by 20 yards per game Third-highest single-season average in SEC history, only behind Kentucky’s Tim Couch (388.6 in 1998) and LSU’s Joe Burrow (378.1 in 2019) Broke the school record established by Rex Grossman (354.2 in 2001) 180.02 – Passing Efficiency Ranks sixth on the FBS single-season record list (minimum of 30 attempts per game) Ranked seventh in the FBS this season, but first among players averaging at least 30 attempts per game Broke Danny Wuerffel’s school record of 178.4 from the 1995 season Propelled him to a 168.53 career rating, which ranks eighth in FBS history (minimum 500 completions) His career figure also ranks second in school history, behind Tim Tebow’s 170.8 68.9 – Completion Percentage Ranks fifth on the SEC single-season record list (minimum of 250 completions) Broke Tim Tebow’s single-season school record of 67.8 percent from 2009 (minimum of 200 completions) Propelled him to a career completion percentage of 67.8 percent – which ranks third in SEC history (minimum 500 completions) and breaks Tebow’s school record of 66.4 percent (minimum 400 completions) 7 – Games with Four-Plus Passing Touchdowns One of 10 FBS players since 2000 (and one of two this year) with seven such games in a season Broke the single-season school record previously established by Danny Wuerffel (five in 1995 and 1996) Included two games of six passing touchdowns (at Ole Miss, vs. Arkansas), making him one of five SEC players in history with multiple games of six passing touchdowns in a season 5 – 400-Yard Passing Games Led all FBS players The only SEC player since at least the start of 1996 with five 400-yard passing games in a season Broke the single-season school record jointly held by Rex Grossman (two in 2001) and Danny Wuerffel (two in 1996) Included two outings of 474 passing yards (vs. Georgia and LSU), which are tied for second on Florida’s single-game record list In most years, and perhaps without those three losses ahead of the vote, Trask would likely have been a shoe-in for the trophy. He was on pace with Joe Burrow, last year’s unquestionable winner. There is an argument that Florida didn’t do enough to promote their candidate, although compared to Alabama and Clemson—who boasted the other three candidates—their promotion was on par and even greater than others. And as Head Coach Dan Mullen was fond of saying, winning is the best promotion of all. That’s perhaps what hurt Trask in the long run, that his team wasn’t at the top of the records, despite being a Top 10 team all season. More so, Trask embodies all that the Heisman Memorial Trust ask of their winners, as outlined in their mission. “The Heisman Memorial Trophy annually recognizes the outstanding college football player whose performance best exhibits the pursuit of excellence with integrity. The winners of the trophy epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard work.” That sounds a lot like Kyle Trask. Alas, it was DeVonta Smith’s award to lose this season and he earned the right to raise the trophy. We bemoan that the Heisman had become a quarterback award (16 of the last 19 winners were passers) as opposed to simply recognizing the best player overall. And there is something to the argument. Quarterbacks, by nature of their position, are on the field more and a part of nearly every offensive play. Their stats are increased because of the offenses dependency on the player. A skill player—receiver, running back, tight end—must find a way to stand out while fighting for snaps against anywhere from five to 12 other players. Smith did just that. As released by Alabama, here were the qualifiers for Smith when it came to voting. Leads the nation in receptions (105), receiving yards (1,641), receiving touchdowns (20) and all-purpose yards (1,912) Holds the Alabama single-season record for receiving scores while ranking second in both receiving yards and receptions Gone over 100 yards receiving in eight of 12 contests in 2020, including a pair of 200-plus yard performances highlighted by his 219-yard effort at LSU Just the third player in SEC history with 1,200 receiving yards in multiple seasons and the fourth Crimson Tide wideout to eclipse the 1,000-yard marker in multiple seasons Has been dominant in the Crimson Tide’s five games against ranked opponents, totaling 46 receptions for 715 yards and nine touchdowns Added nine punt returns for 219 yards and a touchdown to go with three kickoffs totaling 46 yards So while Smith ran away with the trophy with his top-notch speed, the bigger question became, how would voting shake out amongst the remaining candidates. And, well, the numbers for the runner-ups were the most shocking part of the entire event. Trask appeared on 48.65% of ballots (Smith appeared on 79.94%) and did not finish better than fourth in any of the six regions in which the voting is split (Far West, Southwest, South, Mid-Atlantic, Northeast and Midwest). Smith polled 1,856 points to capture the award over Trevor Lawrence of Clemson (1,187 points), Mac Jones (1,130 points) also of Alabama and Kyle Trask (737 points) of Florida. The point total is reached by a system of three points for a first place vote, two for second and one for third. For Kyle Trask to have been voted the fourth best player in the entire country is respectable and something the most famous back up in the game should be proud of without shame. It’s only the seventh time in history Florida had a top-four finisher in the Heisman voting. The only Gators to previously accomplish the feat are Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1995, 1996), Rex Grossman (2001), and Tim Tebow (2007, 2008). Here’s the thing: Smith winning makes sense. We can make our peace with that. And we can even understand the class of finalist. Perhaps Alabama running back Najee Harris (5th) and even Florida tight end Kyle Pitts (10th) should have been higher up the finalist list than they were, but that’s somewhat due to region bias. The rub is the fact that Trask finished fourth. The assumption the entire time has been that DeVonta Smith should win, but if it was going to be a quarterback, it needed to be Kyle Trask. The other two had not done what he did on the field this season. Kyle Trask leads the nation in passing yards per game and touchdowns. Jones leads the nation in efficiency and rating. Presumably the 927 voters (870 media votes, 56 former Heisman winners, one fan vote submitted through Nissan) can decide which of those categories are more important to them in terms of quarterback success. This writer believes the ability to move the ball downfield and score is more important and therefore Trask performed better than Jones. The Gators also lacked a run game this season, something Jones was able to lean on at Alabama. Trevor Lawrence is a generational quarterback, at 34-2 as a starter, who is almost assuredly going to be the No. 1 pick in the upcoming 2021 NFL Draft. But this isn’t a career award and it isn’t purely a talent and popularity contest. There has been an argument presented by voters that the ballot mentions nothing of the criteria listed in the Heisman mission. It instead it simply ask voters to list their three Heisman finalists knowing the trophy is “awarded to the outstanding college football player in the United States.” And from that, a caveat is given to vote on the most talented player; the best pro prospect. But that’s not what the Heisman is about. The word “outstanding” should harken back to the original Heisman mission. Someone with great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard work. Outstanding is more than impressive, it’s more than talented and it’s more than potential. The Heisman isn’t a bowl game MVP trophy. It isn’t just a quarterback award and it isn’t a career award. It’s an acknowledgment of the most outstanding player in college football that year. In this year, 2020, that was DeVonta Smith…but Kyle Trask was a close second, no matter what the numbers might say.

A few thoughts to jump start your Tuesday morning: MULLEN WATCH: DAY ONE Amid all the talk that Dan Mullen might be headed toward New York to coach the Jets now that Adam Gase has been fired, the team has asked permission to speak to the following NFL assistants: Eric Bienemy (Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator), Brian Daboll (Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator), Arthur Smith (Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator), Brandon Staley (Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator) and Matt Eberflus (Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator). There is no mention of Mullen so far. Jacksonville fired Doug Marrone Monday amid speculation that former Florida and Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer will take the job if the Jaguars are willing to meet his demand of a $12 million salary. Meyer texted me that the NFL talk is all rumors, but $12 million and a chance to coach Trevor Lawrence might be persuasive. If Meyer turns down the Jags overtures, Mullen could be next on the list of prospects since he’s a noted quarterback whisperer. Another job that is open is the Los Angeles Chargers, but that one could be filled by Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, who may return to the NFL if the Chargers pay him well enough but also give him the money he wants to hire a first rate staff. That is another job for which there has been no connection – at least so far – with Mullen. Mullen could also be seen as the quick fix in Houston for quarterback Deshaun Watson although Joe Brady or Bienemy might have the inside track there. It is rumored that the Chicago Bears have a serious interest. Mullen has not interviewed for the vacant Atlanta Falcons opening. If you are prone to wager on such things: As of Monday night, put your money on Mullen staying at the University of Florida and here is the reason why. If he were intent on leaving UF, he would not have gone ahead and fired Torian Gray and Ron English. Instead, he would have kept them on, taken an NFL job and left keeping or dismissing them to whoever is the new head coach. Now, things could change in a hurry but as of this moment, I think it’s likely Mullen will be staying at UF. TRASK LONGSHOT FOR HEISMAN TROPHY TONIGHT For Florida quarterback Kyle Trask to win the Heisman Trophy when it is announced tonight, it will take a serious split among the three Alabama players who are top five – wide receiver Devonta Smith, quarterback Mac Jones and running back Najee Harris, who isn’t a finalist after a fifth place finish. Joining Trask and the three Alabama players is Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence. A three-way split isn’t unprecedented. In 1973, John Cappelletti of Penn State won the Heisman when Ohio State tackle John Hicks, running back Archie Griffin and linebacker Randy Gradishar finished in the top six of the voting while splitting off enough votes for Cappelletti to ease past Hicks, who finished second. Most of the betting money is on Smith to become the first non-quarterback to win the trophy since Alabama running back Derrick Henry won in 2015. The last time a wide receiver won the Heisman was 1991 when Michigan’s Desmond Howard came out on top. GATORS CAN’T LET JOHN PETTY JR. HEAT UP FROM THE OUTSIDE When Florida’s surprising Gators (5-1, 2-0 SEC) take the court at Alabama (7-3, 2-0 SEC) in a battle for the early lead in the Southeastern Conference, they will be fully focused on sharpshooter John Petty Jr. The 6-5 wing guard is a career 42.3% 3-point shooter who can heat up in a hurry as Tennessee found out last Saturday when Petty hit 3-4 from long distance while scoring 19 to lead the Crimson Tide to an upset win on the road over the then 7th-ranked Vols. Petty also scored 19 while hitting four 3-pointers a year ago when the Gators beat Alabama 104-98 in double overtime. Not only do the Gators have to keep Petty from lighting them up from the outside, they have to find a way to score against a smothering Alabama defense that held Tennessee to 31.8% shooting overall and just 4-21 from the 3-point line. Tennessee’s vaunted 1-2 inside punch of 6-11 John Fulkerson and 6-6 Yves Pons combined for only 13 points on 3-11 shooting and just seven rebounds. Critical for the Gators will be to get the ball inside to 6-11 Colin Castleton (43 points in the last two games) and 6-8 Anthony Duruji (27 in the last two including a career-high 16 in the Gators win over LSU). If the Gators can score inside, it opens the floor for Tre Mann (15.2 points per game) and Scottie Lewis (14.0). TUESDAY’S SEC BASKETBALL GAMES FLORIDA (5-1, 2-0 SEC) at Alabama (7-3, 2-0 SEC) Vanderbilt (4-3, 0-1 SEC) at Kentucky (2-6, 1-0 SEC) #13 Missouri (7-1, 1-1 SEC) at Mississippi State (6-4, 1-1 SEC) RECRUITING, THE NFL DRAFT AND PLAYER DEVELOPMENT It is no secret that Alabama not only recruits better than anyone else in the SEC but the Crimson Tide do the best job of developing their players. Here is a look at how the 14 SEC teams rank both in the SEC and nationally when it comes to recruiting but how well they develop players too. The ultimate test of development is how many players are getting drafted. Here are the recruiting rankings since 2010 and the number of players drafted since the 2011 NFL Draft. (SEC rank first, national rank second, number of players drafted, won-loss record from 2010-20) 1/1 Alabama: 93; 135-15 2/6 Georgia: 58; 108-38 3/7 LSU: 74; 108-33 4/8 Auburn: 37; 93-50 5/9 FLORIDA: 67; 89-50 6/13 Texas A&M: 35; 93-47 7/14 Tennessee: 18; 66-69 8/21 South Carolina: 34; 80-59 9/23 Ole Miss: 26; 65-69 10/25 Mississippi State: 35; 83-58 11/28 Arkansas: 33; 61-74 12/35 Kentucky: 15; 62-74 13/44 Missouri: 24; 81-57 14/48 Vanderbilt: 15; 53-81 Alabama’s dominance shows up in recruiting rankings, player development and the won-loss record. That’s no surprise. Among the bigger surprises are Georgia only sending 58 players to the NFL and a lack of drafted players at both Auburn (37) and Tennessee (18). Florida suffered through losing seasons in both 2013 and 2017 but the Gators have won 29 games in the last three seasons under Dan Mullen and have had 12 players taken in the last two NFL Drafts, which are relevant to Mullen’s arrival in Gainesville. FOOTBALL AND BASKETBALL STUFF IN THE SEC ALABAMA: Alabama’s offensive line won the Joe Moore, which is given to the team with the best O-line in college football. Alabama is the first two-time recipient of the award, having won in 2015 which was Derrick Henry’s Heisman Trophy season. ARKANSAS: Former Ohio State quarterback and now Colorado State wide receivers coach Kenny Guiton will join the Arkansas staff as the wide receivers coach … Arkansas basketball will be without Indiana transfer Justin Smith for 3-6 weeks following ankle surgery. Smith was averaging 11.6 points and 7.1 rebounds before his injury. AUBURN: Auburn’s two best receivers in 2020 – Seth Williams and Anthony Schwartz – have declared for the NFL Draft … Backup QB Cord Sandberg has put his name in the NCAA transfer portal ... Defensive tackle Coynis Miller is transferring to Jackson State to play for Deion Sanders. GEORGIA: Trey Hill, a two-year starter at center, will forego his senior season to enter the NFL Draft. KENTUCKY: Amid the flood of seniors announcing they will return next season, quarterback Terry Wilson has placed his name in the NCAA transfer portal. Returning for the Wildcats are the right side of the offensive line, tackle Darian Kinnard and guard Luke Fortner; wide receiver Josh Ali; corners Yusuf Corker and Brandin Echols; tight end Justin Rigg; D-lineman Josh Pascal; and defensive backs Quadre Mosely, Zach Johnson and Davonte Robinson. LSU: With Glen Logan announcing he will return for 2021, LSU will bring back its entire defensive line. Already announcing they will return are Ali Gaye, Neil Farrel and Andre Anthony … Grad transfer linebacker Jabril Cox will enter the NFL Draft as will 30-year-old punter Josh Rosenberg, who is a former minor league baseball pitcher. MISSISSIPPI STATE: No word yet on the fate of receiver Malik Heath, who bragged on a video about kicking a Tulsa player who was on the ground during the end-of-the-game Armed Forces Bowl brawl. Heath might be kicked off the team or at the very least suspended well into the 2021 season. MISSOURI: Although they knocked off previously unbeaten Arkansas last Saturday, Missouri dropped one spot to 13th in the latest Associated Press and Coaches basketball polls ... Mizzou football defensive coordinator Ryan Walters has interviewed with Bret Bielema about the vacant DC job at Illinois. OLE MISS: Defensive linemen Sam Williams and Tariqious Tisdale both announced they’re returning to Ole Miss for 2021. SOUTH CAROLINA: Tight end Nick Muse, who caught 30 passes for 425 yards and a TD, is returning for his senior season ... New coach Shane Beamer retained Mike Bobo as his offensive coordinator. Bobo will be paid $1.2 million in 2021. TENNESSEE: Despite dropping their first game of the season, Tennessee (7-1, 1-1 SEC) dropped only two spots to 9th in the Associated Press basketball poll, two spots to eighth in the Coaches poll … Wide receiver Velus Jones Jr., who transferred in from Southern Cal prior to the 2020 season, has announced he’s returning for 2021. TEXAS A&M: Wide receiver Camron Buckley is returning for the 2021 season. VANDERBILT: Barton Simmons is leaving 247Sports where he’s the lead recruiting analyst to become Clark Lea’s director of player personnel. SOME MORE FOOTBALL STUFF Doc Holliday, a legendary recruiter who won 88 games in 11 seasons as the head coach at Marshall, will not be retained by the school after a 7-3 season that included a Conference USA Eastern Division championship. Holliday’s contract expired and was not extended by the school president. Holliday coached safeties for Urban Meyer’s staff at Florida from 2005-07 and was the Gators’ chief recruiter in South Florida. Former Wisconsin quarterback Jack Coan, who threw for 3,278 yards and 23 touchdowns as a two-year starter for the Badgers, is transferring to Notre Dame, where he will have a chance to take over for three-year starter Ian Book, who is off to the NFL. Oklahoma wide receiver Charleston Rambo, who caught 76 passes for 1,180 yards and nine touchdowns in three seasons, has put his name in the NCAA transfer portal. Rambo caught two passes for 45 yards and a touchdown against Florida in the Cotton Bowl. ESPN analyst Todd McShay has Florida tight end Kyle Pitts ranked sixth among all prospects for the 2021 NFL Draft. McShay ranks Florida QB Kyle Trask the 68th overall prospect and the 6th-ranked quarterback behind Trevor Lawrence (Clemson), Zach Wilson (BYU), Justin Fields (Ohio State), Trey Lance (North Dakota State) and Mac Jones (Alabama). A PITHY PARTING SHOT ON TUESDAY: When I look at the defensive stats in the Southeastern Conference I can’t help but think of Jamie Newman, who opted out of 2020 rather than play for Georgia. He claimed he was afraid of Covid-19, but I seriously doubt it. I’m of the opinion he probably struggled against Georgia’s defensive backs in August and became fearful he would look even worse against the rest of the SEC so he took the easy way out. Judging by what we saw of SEC defenses, Newman might have lit up a bunch of teams and made himself a bunch of money. Then again, given the poor secondary play not only in the SEC but nationwide, Newman might have really cost himself by not playing. He will be a combine warrior but that’s not the same as playing real games against real competition. I will be surprised if he is picked before the fifth round.

Perhaps the best advice I can give any and all Gator fans is this: Hold your breath and be prepared because the next seven days might be quite the roller coaster ride for your emotions. The reason? The National Football League is going to come calling for Dan Mullen complete with boatloads of money. There is every good reason to believe Mullen will elect to remain at the University of Florida, but there are also compelling reasons to believe he will leave for the No Fun League. I’ve had conversations with several people, some connected to the Florida football program and some from the NFL. My conclusion is that Dan Mullen would never leave Florida for another college coaching job but if he perceived the right situation in the NFL he would leave. I know this: Dan Mullen loves the University of Florida. He loves working for Scott Stricklin. He wants to rebuild UF football into the powerhouse that it was when he was Urban Meyer’s offensive coordinator and right hand man. That being said, there are things about college football that he doesn’t like such as the song and dance that has to be done with compliance when it comes to recruiting and being able to build relationships with players on campus. NCAA rules are stifling and more often than not, trivial. When it comes to recruiting, the NCAA severely limits what a head coach can do off campus. Instead of letting the head coach evaluate a player for talent, talk to his teachers, spend time with his parents and know that a kid is capable of fitting in with the standards of the program both academic and within the football culture, the NCAA makes it a crapshoot. Head coaches don’t necessarily know what they’re getting and yet they are responsible for the off-the-field and off-campus actions of their players. Once it’s past football season they have limited contact with players, which often leads to bad decisions and bad situations. Those are the kind of things that Dan Mullen and most every college football coach in the country hates, but it’s part of the deal. If you’re going to coach college football you have to deal with the stupidity of the NCAA, thus the appeal of the NFL where it’s all about the football. Remember when Billy Donovan left the University of Florida for the NBA? Billy grew weary of trying to play by the rules when it came to recruiting only to lose player after player to programs who casually disregarded the rulebook. He could have built Florida into a true dynasty program if only a third of the kids he coveted and ultimately lost had chosen to be Gators. When Billy decided to part ways with the Oklahoma City Thunder after five years, he could have easily returned to the college ranks. There are very few athletic directors that wouldn’t have done whatever is necessary to accommodate him. But Billy stayed with the NBA. Why? Because he doesn’t like dealing with the NCAA and all its dumb rules. In the NBA it’s all about the basketball. This is not to say that Dan Mullen has grown weary enough of the NCAA and the hanky panky that occurs on the recruiting trail to bolt for the NFL, but it is a possibility that we’re going to have to deal with the next seven days and probably every year this time for quite a few years into the future. The moment the NFL regular season concludes tonight, countdown to firing day is T-minus 48 hours. Coaches will be fired and Mullen’s name will be on the lips of most of the owners and general managers who need to find a replacement fast. The reason Dan Mullen is such a hot ticket item for the NFL this year is quite simple. The NFL is quarterback centric with rules that thoroughly favor the offense and Mullen is perceived quite rightly as a QB guru who is a play calling genius. When the Gators torched Alabama for 46 points it only ratcheted up the interest in bringing Mullen to the league. The NFL people saw what he did with Kyle Trask, a kid who sat the bench three years in high school and his first three years at Florida. With a 2021 draft class for quarterbacks perhaps the strongest it has been since 1983 when the first round included future Hall of Famers John Elway, Jim Kelly and Dan Marino, Mullen is perceived a necessity in many circles. The 2021 class will include Trevor Lawrence (Clemson), Justin Fields (Ohio State), Mac Jones (Alabama), Trey Lance (North Dakota State), Zach Wilson (BYU) and Trask, all of whom are projected first rounders. In the NFL it would be all about developing his quarterback and calling plays, the things that Mullen does best. With the right general manager to do his recruiting for him, Mullen could concentrate on the things he loves to do. If there are college players he believes would be a good fit for his system, he could go on campus during the offseason, watch workouts, conduct personal interviews and spend time in the film room figuring out if this prospect has the kind of football IQ that allows him to absorb things quickly. Now, none of this is to suggest that Mullen has one foot out the Florida door, but only that the interest from the NFL is there and Mullen will listen. If there is one thing Dan Mullen learned from Urban Meyer during the nine years they spent working together it is to always keep an open ear to listen. He’s going to listen and there is that possibility that if the right situation presents itself, he could leave Florida. There is also the very good chance that he will say thanks but no thanks. Mullen is determined to restore Florida football to the powerhouse level that it was when he was Meyer’s offensive coordinator. In three years he’s given the Gators three New Years Six bowl games and made Florida relevant once again. The program is definitely headed in the right direction and many of the holes left behind by the previous staff have been patched up. Still, progress hasn’t occurred at the rate Mullen wants, much less the Gator Nation. Gator fans perceive him to be a poor recruiter who has surrounded himself with equally poor recruiters although most of his assistants are very strong in the area of player development. He brought in Tim Brewster to coach tight ends and bolster recruiting last year. He’s pink slipped corners coach Torian Gray and safeties coach Ron English, neither of which are good recruiters complicated by a 2020 in which the players they coach up had poor seasons. Much to the chagrin of the Gator Nation, Mullen has retained defensive coordinator Todd Grantham. Grantham and Mullen have a four-year history of working together, three of which produced top 10 defensive units. The 2020 season was a disaster but this Covid-19 year with all its uncertainty was hard on defensive units nationwide. Points and yardage were up dramatically as defensive coordinators were handicapped by a lack of physicality in practice. Very little hitting and not enough tackling in practice showed, particularly with the Gators. A hard question that has to be asked is did Mullen retain Grantham because he thinks 2020 was an aberration or was it because the cash crunch being felt at Florida and nearly every Division I school not named Texas or Auburn (see the buyouts for Tom Herman and Gus Malzahn) made buying out Grantham’s contract ($3.6 million approximately remaining) infeasible? There is a theory out there that it is easier for Mullen to bolt to the NFL and leave Grantham to UF athletic director Scott Stricklin and whoever becomes the next head coach. If that’s the case then why were Gray and English dismissed? The next seven days are going to be critical, not only because Mullen will have the opportunity to take an NFL job but because if he stays at Florida, it will be a necessity to bring in two assistants who can not only improve the level of play on the field, but who can get the job done on the recruiting trail. If he is to stay, it is imperative for Mullen to make two outstanding hires if the Gators are to put the 2020 defensive disaster behind them. There is great anticipation that Mullen could bring in Travaris Robinson to coach the corners. Robinson was Will Muschamp’s corners coach at Florida and defensive coordinator at South Carolina. He’s considered an excellent technician who has great rapport with players and a lights out recruiter. There have been unconfirmed reports that Robinson would also be hired as the co-defensive coordinator, although that might be thought of as a slap in the face of Grantham. There are other options beside Robinson such as Corey Bell, currently on the UCF staff but the corners coach at Florida in 2017. He’s the former head coach at Miami Edison and well connected in South Florida as a recruiter. He’s capable of coaching either the corners or the safeties. Two other names that might be strongly considered are former Mississippi State defensive coordinator and current Michigan safeties coach Bob Shoop, whose 2018 defense at MSU was the top unit in the nation. Lending credence to that speculation is the fact that Shoop was coaching players left behind in Starkville by Mullen and Grantham. Another name that has been whispered is former Gator All-SEC safety Daryl Dixon, who coaches the corners for Jeff Monken at Army. Army’s secondary finished second nationally in pass efficiency defense in 2020. The previously mentioned names have everything to do with speculation, none of which has actually been confirmed. What can be confirmed is the amount of interest in coming to Florida to work for Mullen and Grantham. Some of the coaches showing interest have serious credentials at the highest levels. Mullen will not be cornered into a rush decision. He has plenty of options. So how will all this play out? A guess here – and it’s only a guess – is that Mullen is going to listen to the NFL offers. I believe he won’t go anywhere that there isn’t a strong GM and an equally impressive player personnel department. Some other things that will be considered are weather, stadium (domed, retractable roof or open air if it’s in a cold clime), draft order and owner. For example, how many coaches have been hired and fired by Dan Snyder in Washington? When you consistently draft early and don’t make the playoffs there is a real problem. Washington is the perfect example. Unless the situation is whatever is next to perfect, I believe Dan Mullen will say thanks but no thanks. I do believe that he has a strong commitment to restoring the Florida program to a championship level and that his appetite for making the Gators great again was whetted by the close encounter with an SEC title in Atlanta. I also believe he is going to enjoy the underdog role he will have in 2021 when the media will do everything but anoint Georgia as the national champion eight or so months before the curtain opens on the college football season. Perception is the Gators will take a step back having lost Trask, Kyle Pitts, Kadarius Toney and Trevon Grimes from one of the more dynamic offenses in Florida football history. Lest we forget, Florida was thought to be a serious uphill challenge in 2018 when Mullen won 10 games with Feleipe Franks at QB. When Franks broke his ankle in game three of 2019, there was no shortage of predictions that the Gators would be a 6-6 team at best. Trask stepped in, led the Gators to 11 wins and shocked the world. Forget the bowl game. In 2020 the Gators were three possessions from an unbeaten season and the College Football Playoff. So the challenge is there for 2021 at Florida. Will that be enough of a lure to keep Mullen in Gainesville? I think that it will, but like everyone else at this point, I’m only speculating. I’ve talked to enough people who have solid information and even they are split down the middle on whether he stays or whether he goes, but everyone – including those with NFL connections – believe Mullen is quite content to be here at Florida, therefore anything less than a near perfect offer from the NFL won’t fly with him. At Florida we’ve been through this before. There were very few years in which Steve Spurrier wasn’t courted by NFL teams. He came close to leaving for the Tampa Bay Bucs after the 1996 national championship season and before he chose to leave for Washington after the completion of the 2001 season, he also listened long and hard to the Carolina Panthers. In all cases, Spurrier listened. Mullen’s mentor is Urban Meyer and Urban is one to listen. It is being rumored that Meyer is all set to take the job as the HBC of the Jacksonville Jaguars. In a text from Urban that I got early Sunday afternoon, he said, “All rumor at this point.” It is rumor that he will take the job for sure, but he is listening. Expect the same from Dan Mullen, who is going to listen this year and any time in the future when the NFL comes calling. At some point he might think as Spurrier did – why is it that the Florida fan base is never satisfied? – and decide enough is enough. I don’t think that time is now. It could happen in the future, but my instincts tell me not right now.

A few thoughts to jump start your Monday morning: The National Football League concluded its regular season Sunday night. The New York Jets were the first to beat the Monday rush to kick off the No Fun League’s version of Countdown to Firing Day by ousting Adam Gase after two seasons. There will be others, perhaps as many as four or five more, before the annual coach firing carnage comes to an end. If you are a Florida football fan, then you have the right to start sweating because Dan Mullen is going to be targeted by owners and general managers intent on bringing in someone who knows how to develop quarterbacks and put points on the scoreboard. In Mullen’s three seasons at Florida, the Gators have put up the best numbers since Urban Meyer was the head coach, Mullen was the offensive coordinator and Tim Tebow was a regular at the Heisman Trophy ceremony in New York. Will Mullen leave UF for the NFL? Everybody will be offering Mullen a salary in the $8-9 million range but money isn’t going to be a key factor. What it will take is the right fit with the right general manager and personnel director plus either a quarterback needing only a whisperer of Mullen’s skills to take the league by storm or a chance to draft a QB that has can’t miss written all over him. The Jacksonville Jaguars, who have the first pick in the draft, are expected to fire their coach and bring in someone capable of developing likely first round pick Trevor Lawrence of Clemson. The hot rumor is that Urban Meyer is the Jags’ target, but if Urban says no, Mullen is only an hour or so away in Gainesville. The New York Jets have the second pick and they’re expected to take Ohio State’s Justin Fields, who is coached by Ryan Day, who spent two years as Mullen’s graduate assistant at Florida in 2005-06. So, there is reason to sweat. However, there is also reason to believe Dan Mullen is content to continue his rebuild of the Florida football program. He came here to win championships and he was within three possessions of making the College Football Playoff as SEC champ with an 11-0 record. The taste of coming that close might be all the motivation Mullen needs to continue what he set out to do when he got off the plane in Gainesville in December of 2017. I think it’s going to be a close call, but my gut instinct is that Mullen won’t leave Florida until he has re-established the Gators as a legimate year-in and year-out national championship contender. BEST WISHES FOR TORIAN GRAY AND RON ENGLISH Ron English and Torian Gray have been pink slipped by Dan Mullen, which is another reason why I believe Mullen isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. New coaches will be hired to replace English and Gray so Gator fans will rejoice, believing their absence and the infusion of new coaching blood will help the University of Florida (a) recruit better players and (b) win championships in the future. I think everyone is dismayed by the play of the Florida secondary in 2020. In the more than 50 years I’ve been writing about college football I can’t recall too many times when I’ve seen a position group make the exact same mistakes week in and week out. The few games the Gators played well in the secondary raised hopes that the sinking ship would be righted but a game or two later it was back to the same blown coverages and mental mistakes. If these were true freshmen making the mistakes, we’d find it in our hearts to forgive, believing even the bad experiences would translate to better play in the future. But these were veterans who every week couldn’t line up in the right place or got lost in space while some second-rate receiver blew by them. Change was necessary, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a painful experience. I’ve had to fire people and I’ve been fired. It’s never pleasant even when necessary. When it comes to coaches, we only think of the on-the-field product, winning and recruiting. We rarely consider the disruption of lives and the trauma that is involved when there is a firing, not just for the coach but his entire family. Relationships are severed. Houses have to be sold. Kids will have to transfer to a new school and make new friends. A coach who has had an impeccable relationship might not be able to find a decent job and the family income plunges. And that’s just the obvious. It didn’t work out well for Ron English and Torian Gray, but they deserve our respect instead of everyone in the Gator Nation proclaiming good riddance and, in many cases, ridiculing them. They worked hard and gave their best but obviously it wasn’t good enough. They’re moving on and we should too, but not before offering them our good wishes, respect and the hope that things will work out well for them wherever they land. CASTLETON, DURUJI GIVE THE GATORS A NEW DYNAMIC It is quite obvious that during the time between the Florida State loss when Keyontae Johnson went down and last week when the Gators (5-1, 2-0 SEC) opened play in the Southeastern Conference with wins over Vanderbilt and LSU, that Mike White re-tooled the Gators to incorporate more of the abilities of 6-11 Michigan transfer Colin Castleton and 6-8 Louisiana Tech transfer Anthony Duruji. With Johnson out a minimum of three more months, the question became who can fill the void. Rather than trying to make up for Johnson’s absence with a single player, White has used both Castleton and Duruji with great effectiveness in the two SEC wins. Castleton, in particular, has been a revelation. In his sophomore season at Michigan, Castleton averaged only 3.4 points and 2.7 rebounds per game. In Florida’s first four games he totaled 26 points and 18 rebounds. In the last two games, he’s gone off for 44 points (23 vs. Vandy, 21 vs. LSU) and 11 rebounds while hitting 18-23 from the field. Against LSU, he scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half. Duruji, who averaged 12.2 points and 6.2 rebounds per game as a sophomore at Louisiana Tech, had five points and 10 rebounds and was 0-5 from the 3-point line in Florida’s first four games while coming off the bench. Inserted into the starting lineup for the Vandy game, Duruji has scored 27 points (11 vs. Vandy, 16 vs. LSU) and pulled down 12 rebounds while also hitting 3-6 of his 3-point shots. Castleton offers the possibility of a viable scoring threat in the low blocks to go with size and shot blocking abilities. Duruji is an inside-outside threat with a 48-inch vertical that allows him to play much bigger than 6-8. We are still early in the season. There are 16 more SEC games that have to be played, but if Castleton and Duruji can combine for something like 23-25 points and 11-12 rebounds per game, the Gators have a chance to be a very good basketball team. Bump those combined numbers up to something like 28 and 14 and the Gators might very well challenge for the SEC championship. SEC BASKETBALL SCORES FROM SATURDAY FLORIDA (5-1, 2-0 SEC) 83, LSU (6-2, 1-1 SEC) 79 Alabama (7-3, 2-0 SEC) 71, #7 Tennessee (7-1, 1-1 SEC) 63 #12 Missouri (7-1, 1-1 SEC) 81, Arkansas (9-1, 1-1 SEC) 68 Texas A&M (6-2, 1-1 SEC) 68, Auburn (6-4, 0-2 SEC) 66 Kentucky (2-6, 1-0 SEC) 78; Mississippi State (6-4, 1-1 SEC) 73 South Carolina (2-2) 78, Florida A&M (1-6) 71 Wichita State 6-2) 83, Ole Miss (5-3) 79 TUESDAY’S GAMES FLORIDA (5-1, 2-0 SEC) at Alabama (7-3, 2-0 SEC) Vanderbilt (4-3, 0-1 SEC) at Kentucky (2-6, 1-0 SEC) #12 Missouri (7-1, 1-1 SEC) at Mississippi State (6-4, 1-1 SEC) WEDNESDAY’S GAMES Arkansas (9-1, 1-1 SEC) at #7 Tennessee (7-1, 1-1 SEC) Georgia (7-1, 0-1 SEC) at LSU (6-2, 1-1 SEC) Texas A&M (6-2, 1-1 SEC) at South Carolina (2-2, 0-0 SEC) Auburn (6-4, 0-2 SEC) at Ole Miss (5-3, 0-1 SEC) COLLEGE FOOTBALL IN THE SEC AND ELSEWHERE Alabama (12-0) has been established as an 8-point favorite to beat Ohio State (7-0) in the national championship game, which will be played in Miami one week from tonight. Call me an SEC homer if you will, but I think Alabama is going to win by a couple of touchdowns. With Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian on his way to Texas as the new head ball coach, the early favorites to replace him are a pair of fired NFL coaches. Bill O’Brien, fired by the Houston Texans, is part of the Bill Belichick coaching tree (as is Nick Saban). Fired New York Jets coach Adam Gase worked as a student assistant to Saban at Michigan State and followed him to LSU where he spent one year as a recruiting assistant and two years as a grad assistant. The tab for firing Tom Herman and hiring Sarkisian at Texas is going to be at least $50 million. It will cost $25 million to buy out Herman ($15 million) and his assistants. Details haven’t been released for Sarkisian’s contract but it’s going to be five years with likely starting pay of $5 million per. And then there are assistants that have to be paid, plus moving expenses, etc. It’s only January, but on the strength of sneaking past Cincinnati in the Peach Bowl and the anticipated return of quarterback JT Daniels, Georgia fans are already claiming 2021 will be the year of the Poodle. While Daniels is vastly superior to Stetson Bennett IV, I haven’t seen anything that indicates he’s elite. Given Kirby Smart’s history of botching things with quarterbacks, I have to wonder how it’s going to work out with Daniels and hotshot early enrollee Brock Vandagriff this spring. For the life of me I can’t imagine that both of them will be happy. Texas A&M senior defensive tackle Jayden Peavy says he’s going to take advantage of the NCAA ruling that will let him come back for another year. There is plenty of speculation that Peavy is not the only senior that will return. Should quarterback Kellen Mond choose to come back for one more year – more than a few think he might – the Aggies could find themselves in the early national championship chatter. A COACH OPTS OUT OF FOOTBALL There was a time when Tony Franklin was considered one of the more innovative offensive minds in all of football. There have been many whistle stops in his lengthy career, among them offensive coordinator at Auburn and at Cal, where he mentored quarterback Jared Goff. After 40 years in coaching, Franklin has decided to retire but not before a farewell letter. Here is an excerpt: “Football is not a contact sport. It’s a violent game. If played the way it must be played to maximize success, you must mentally and physically condition a group of young boys, or men, to have little to no regards for their health, or the health of their opponents. You must swarm to the football and destroy everything on your pathway to reach it. “Over the years I have been both the destroyer and the ‘destroyee’ as a player and as a coach. I’ve witnessed and partaken in the splattering of brain cells and the breaking of bones. And on November 21, 2020 at the ripe young age of 63, I ended this violent experiment in an unexpected final game of the 2020 season at Troy University. It is time to discover what I want to do when I grow up.” A PITHY THOUGHT REGARDING TARGETING: I’ve had it with the inconsistencies of the targeting penalties in college football. As much as I understand the need for safety in the game, there is absolutely zero consistency in the way targeting is called. For example, a running back lowers his head and veers into a linebacker coming in to make a tackle. There is helmet-to-helmet contact. The linebacker gets flagged for targeting and is ejected. The running back stays in the game. It’s not always the defender’s fault and for that reason I think it’s in the best interests of the game to handle targeting the way basketball deals with flagrant fouls. There is a Flagrant I which results in ejection and a Flagrant II which is shots and the ball. In football, a Flagrant I should be something like what happened to Kyle Pitts in the Georgia game when the defender came in helmet first with vicious intent. For that, keep the 15-yard penalty and ejection. For lesser offenses, maybe the penalty and then disqualify the player for 10 or 15 plays before letting him return. Call that a Flagrant II and two Flagrant II penalties in a game would result in ejection. The current rule is way too inconsistent and it’s doing nothing for the integrity of the game despite its good intention.

Early in the second half of what would eventually be the Florida Gators (5-1, 2-0) close 83-79 win over the LSU Tigers (6-2,1-1) on Saturday, Colin Castleton came to the bench “riled up” by his own words. After nabbing two quick fouls in the first two minutes of the first half, Castleton had sat as a precaution. But in the second half, he returned to the game a man on fire. The Michigan transfer scored 15 straight points over the first six minutes of the second half, in route to 21 total points, 19 in the second half alone. His hot streak led LSU to call a timeout and Castleton was feeling himself by the time he got to the bench. There, Keyontae Johnson—“Coach Key” for the time being—calmed down the man who has taken over his spot in the starting lineup. “He was like just stay composed,” Castleton told reporters after the game of Johnson’s message. “Don’t get too overboard, don't get too hyped, just like be composed. Just keep doing what you’re doing, it’s gonna come to you. And he was just helping me out, just relax and try not to get too, you know, overwhelmed with the situation. Just keep playing the game, doing what you’re doing. So that helped me relax a little bit and keep playing.” The moment was an encapsulation of changing roles for the Florida Gators; how two stars are adjusting to their place on this team and what they will need to do in order to provide success. For Johnson, the preseason SEC Player of the Year, the game looks different than it did a month ago. After a terrifying collapse on the court versus the Florida State Seminoles, Johnson spent a week in the hospital and several days at home over Christmas recovering. The man who was supposed to be the nucleus of the team, the one to lead them to the postseason, now has to grasp doing that in a completely different capacity. And to the team, he’s no longer their forward, best scorer and best rebounder. He’s “Coach Key.” And Coach Key can still change the game for the Gators. “It felt great. I feel a lot better, I know, I know our staff does and I'm sure our guys to do too with him being right there,” said White of Johnson’s presence on the bench after the win. “He’s a leader, you know. He’s charismatic, he loves his teammates. And so when he says something at timeouts or in huddles, it holds a lot of weight. He's got ultimate respect from his teammates, and there's no doubt he was a factor today.” “Keyontae was just telling me play with confidence. Confidence, confidence, confidence. When you have no fear and you’re confident, good things happen,” added forward Anthony Duruji who finished with 16 points (6-12, 2-2) and seven total rebounds. “Key is such a smart player, individual. Really a student of the game. He was coaching us up a lot on the bench, kinda coaching me up as well. Trying to pick his brain and he really was just giving us a lot of good commands so I was thankful for him.” Johnson’s game was always predicated on his ability to outsmart whatever defense lay before him, and pure hustle on the other end of the floor. Now, he’s using that same mindset just in a different capacity. Explained Castleton, “He was helping us with the scout, you know he was going over certain players and what they're good at, what they're not good at, what we need to do in this game. He’s in the locker room, he’s talking to us in timeout. “He’s just another coach right now basically because he’s been through the three years. He's our guy, he's our leader, and everybody looks up to him, listens to him so it’s helping us out a lot.” Johnson helping Castleton especially looked like a passing of the baton on Saturday against the Tigers. As mentioned Castleton sat for much of the first half after picking up two quick fouls in the first two minutes. From the moment he returned to the court in the second half, everything changed. Credit to the Gators who scrapped during a first half where the game never got out of two possessions but never seemed to be, frankly, in their possession. Tied at 40 going to halftime though, Florida needed a spark. Colin Castleton lit the match then threw it in the gasoline himself. Less than five minutes into the half, Castleton—posted up underneath the basket—received the pass and fought through four defenders to dump in the basket that made him 4-4 on field goals and 3-3 on free throws in the second half alone. LSU sending the house to defend him was indicative of just how quickly and impactfully he was changing the game. “He’s a talented guy,” said White of his new star. “He’s really skilled, he’s got big, strong hands, length. We’ve gotten better at finding him and Omar (Payne) offensively in their spots. Their confidence level and skill level are both improving. Great to see [Castleton] get going, really gave us a huge spark early second half…we’ve gotta get him some more minutes.” One of the biggest reasons Castleton was able to shred the Tigers defense so effortlessly was by-product of his time on the bench during the first half. In true Keyontae Johnson fashion, he took advantage of the time in (pardon the pun) quarantine to study his opponent from a new perspective. By the time he reentered the game, Castleton told reporters he had a new game plan to attack LSU. “I saw that they were really trying to take advantage of the mismatch on the post, especially with Trendon Watford. You know, he’s a big guy, a versatile player… I saw that they were really trying to exploit that so in the second half we were just trying to help our guys out, whoever was guarding him one-on-one, try to help out a little bit more and when he got a shot up, we made everybody box out because as everybody knows, LSU is a really aggressive team and they get a lot of offensive rebounds. Just walling up, playing good defense and defend the rebound was a big emphasis.” Three clutch free throws from Scottie Lewis in the final 16 seconds sealed the win and the Gators remain undefeated in league play. Florida will next travel to Tuscaloosa where they will take on the Alabama Crimson Tide (7-3, 2-0) Tuesday night. The fabric of this team will continue to look different then it did a month ago as the Florida Gators piece together a new team, born from unimaginable circumstances and a commitment to leaning on each other in whatever way needed.

What is about to happen in a matter of a day or two in college football is akin to the dropping of the green flag to start the Daytona 500. When the flag drops at Daytona or any other NASCAR race at a super speedway, we see a modern day version of Darwin’s survival of the fittest theory acted out on an asphalt theater complete with high banked turns that slingshot cars into straightaways that invite speeds of 200 miles per hour. The driver who takes the checkered flag 500 miles later, survives because he and his crew are the best at adapting, changing and making split second decisions while avoiding crashes that will eliminate any number of cars from the great chase to the finish. The holder of college football’s green flag is the National Collegiate Athletic Association, which, in its infinite wisdom, has declared open season for transfers. Having already ruled that 2020 will not count against the five-year eligibility clock that begins to tick from the moment an athlete steps on campus, the NCAA has now opened the door for any athlete to transfer to any Division I school without having to sit out a year and without having to go through that silly, tedious waiver process. All this is before the entire legislative body of the organization meets later in January to implement a one-time transfer rule that some coaches believe will be the equivalent of free agency. In this pandemic year, we’ve already seen a number of transfer declarations and in recent days, a few players have announced their new grass is greener destination but this is a trickle compared to what is about to take place. Think of how the Daytona 500 begins with 40 750-horsepower cars accelerating and blasting by as the green flag waves to start the race only in this case we’re talking about the 130 schools that make up Division I in college football. Since transfers won’t have to sit out, the market is going to be flooded with the greatest mass migration west of the Serengetti. Nearly every school in Division I will be affected, whether it is players lost to transfer or incoming. For bottom feeders and independents who have difficulty landing quality players via the normal recruiting routes, this open transfer season has the potential to be a lifeline. Everybody is aware that Liberty’s 11-1 season had everything to do with former Auburn quarterback Malik Willis transferring in to add dynamic athleticism to Hugh Freeze’s creative offense. Although he had an up and down career at Tennessee and is unlikely to land a gig with an upper echelon Power Five school, Jarrett Guarantano is going to be seen as a plum recruit for someone in the Group of Five who needs an experienced quarterback. Guarantano has more than 20 SEC starts under his belt so he will be in demand. Another Tennessee quarterback, JT Shrout, who spent two years as a backup in Knoxville, has also transferred out. He is heading to Colorado, not exactly a bottom feeder, but not a top 25 program either. Another Tennessee transfer – edge rusher DeAndre Johnson – is a Miami native who wants to return to Florida for his final year of eligibility, in all probability to UCF, South Florida, Florida Atlantic or FIU. Former Mississippi State quarterback Garret Schrader has also announced that he is transferring to Syracuse where he will be the favorite to be next year’s starting QB. South Carolina on Thursday landed talented transfer wide receiver Ahmarean Brown from Georgia Tech, who could be the replacement for Shi Smith, who has declared for the NFL Draft. These players are just the tip of the iceberg. For the twenty or so Power Five schools that legitimately have a chance to compete for championships, the transfer market is going to be a pick and choose affair. There will be far more players interested in transferring to a school like Florida, for instance, than there will be openings. It’s a well-known fact that Dan Mullen has already received a stack of feelers from players trying to gauge Florida’s interest in obtaining their services. You can almost figure that for every transfer Mullen might show an active interest in, there will be five to ten for whom there is not enough interest to continue the conversation. For Mullen and Florida, the next ten days will be like the last ten laps at Daytona or Talladega when it’s a sprint to the finish and the checkered flag. The kids who wish to transfer to Florida have to be ready to make a decision immediately so they can enroll in time for the spring semester and participate in mat drills in February and spring practice. Those who wish to take their time deciding or who hesitate are going to be passed over for someone of equal or greater ability who is ready to make an immediate move. If you saw the disaster that was Wednesday night’s 55-20 Cotton Bowl beatdown at the hands of Oklahoma, then it’s rather obvious the Gators have holes to fill. The loss had plenty to do with players like Kyle Pitts, Kadarius Toney, Trevon Grimes, Kyree Campbell and Brad Stewart opting out to focus on the NFL Draft but it also exposed a need for wide receivers, defensive linemen and linebackers who are ready to step in and play immediately. Good recruiting by Mullen and his staff has brought in quite a few good receivers but none of these kids have established themselves as next year’s go-to guy. There is an immediate need for a playmaker like Van Jefferson, who transferred to Florida from Ole Miss in 2018. Over the next two years, Jefferson caught 84 passes for 1,160 yards and 12 touchdowns, which helped him land a second round draft selection by the Los Angeles Rams. Florida’s offense is tight end friendly, but Pitts leaves enormous shoes to fill. That Oklahoma ran for more than 400 yards and averaged 10.9 yards per rushing attempt should tell you how desperate the Gators are to find quality D-linemen who can fill gaps and linebackers who can wrap up and put a running back on the ground. Mullen has proven to be a solid recruiter with three consecutive top ten classes. Recruiting fills gaps but the kids take time to develop. This is where the transfer portal can work to Florida’s advantage. Is there another Jonathan Greenard out there? He transferred to Florida as a graduate from Louisville in 2019 and made an immediate impact as an edge rusher. He led the Gators in sacks (9.5) and made All-SEC. It wasn’t just his productivity on the field that made him so valuable, but his leadership and maturity. What Greenard brought to the locker room and his on the field demeanor were missed enormously in 2020 when Florida’s defense put up the worst numbers in decades. Only a couple of weeks ago, the Gators received signed letters of intent from 21 high school kids and one junior college transfer. When school re-opens in January, former five-star running back and Clemson transfer Demarckus Bowman will be enrolled bringing to 15 the number of early enrollees from this group. Due to some of the early enrollees counting back to last year’s scholarship numbers, the Gators have room to sign as many as six more. Maybe the right question to be asking is how many of the six Mullen signs will be transfers? Jason Higdon of 1standtenflorida.com speculates that Mullen will land four, one of which is a multi-position player with serious credentials. Adding players via transfer might seem like your basic no-brainer but there are a couple of other factors to be considered, one of which is UF will not be immune to players leaving. Already announced that they are transferring out are running back Iverson Clement and corners C.J. McWilliams and Chester Kimbrough. In any given year, attrition accounts for three to five players transferring out but with the NCAA offering what amounts to free agency, it’s foolish to think there won’t be several other Gators leaving. Additionally, we have to remember that the NCAA has already ruled that 2020 will not count against anyone’s eligibility. Adjustments will be made for roster size next season because this is the equivalent of blanket immunity and that creates what could be a very attractive decision for several seniors whose eligibility would be expired under normal circumstances. Several Gators, whose draft reports might indicate the last two rounds, free agency or no interest at all, might elect to return to Florida in 2021. For example, freakish linebacker Jeremiah Moon struggled with injuries and Covid-19 in 2020, which limited him to four games. As a result, his draft stock has nosedived due to health concerns. If he can put together a strong season in which he remains healthy all season, Moon could enhance his status. One insider whose information is generally on the money, believes there is a 90 percent chance Moon will be back for the 2021 season. We can expect others. We also have to take into account the lure of graduate school. A senior whose professional future gravitates toward iffy might decide that playing football in exchange for a year of grad school is the right career decision. What we should expect over the next ten days is some serious roster re-shaping largely due to the transfer rules. Some players will leave for what they believe to be greener pastures elsewhere while others will be joining the program for a chance to play immediately for a team that has the personnel and coaching to be a constant threat to compete for championships. In this modern day laboratory where Darwin’s theory will be proven, we will find out just how strong the Florida program is. If the Gators land better personnel than they lose, then consider UF to be one of the fit programs. If Florida loses key players that cannot be replaced, the fitness of the program will have to be questioned. Buckle up. The ride over the next ten days is going to be very, very interesting.

In the final act of what was looking like a Fairy Tale finish for one of the Florida Gators’ greatest football players, Kyle Trask’s dream turned into a Nightmare on AT&T Arlington Way. You’ve heard of Bad Day at Black Rock? This was Cinderella Meets Godzilla in A Not-So-Wonderful Life. Rocky Balboa gets knocked out in the first round. As I sit here pondering the stunning outcome of the Goodyear Cotton Bowl which happened not even 24 hours ago – like many Gator fans, unwilling to watch it back in search of a different outcome – I feel a sense of betrayal by the football gods on behalf of Trask. He deserved better. Sadly, what evolved into one of the best seasons by a player and team since the days of Urban Meyer and Steve Spurrier went up in smoke suddenly -- crashing and burning in Jerry's World like the Hindenburg. The harshness of history will incorrectly judge 2020 as a mediocre-to-poor 8-4 football season when, in fact, for 10 games Trask & Company delivered the promises of Hope & Opportunity in the face of a cruel pandemic. The dream died right before the finish line. If we allow the wrong narrative to be told, it tarnishes the spectacular comeback story of a guy who was wearing a headset not two years ago yet who is now a Heisman Trophy finalist – if only for the honor. (P.S. please note historians: When we voted, Kyle Trask was very Heisman worthy.) How remarkably, symettrical and unfortunate that he finished his career the same way. The junior red-shirt quarterback from Manvel, Texas would not want to say this, so I will: He gladly took a bullet for his Opter-Outers. Just as he wouldn’t want anybody blaming his teammates – even the ones who didn’t show. There were somewhere between 18 and 25 no-shows all told, but believed to be around five "opters" by choice (there could be more): Kyle Pitts, Trevon Grimes, Kadarius Toney, Marco Wilson and Shawn Davis. Trask paid a big price, not just in NFL dollars forfeited for such a bad showing, but a blemish on his legacy. Remember, this is the same guy who was within a touchdown of beating Alabama, maybe winning the Heisman, maybe becoming the fourth statue in front of Steve Spurrier-Florida Field. Not that I am shocked by the loss, nor am I saying that Trask’s poor performance wasn’t to blame. However, the stark contrast in the Trask we saw for 11 games versus the Trask in the first quarter of his first Cotton Bowl with a horrid three interceptions – he only had five all season to that point – left us shaking our heads in wonderment. In our post-game analysis, we might say that the four top receivers who didn’t play – three opting out, one for health reasons – radically changed the offensive attack. That “Alley Oop” style pass that resulted in many successfully executed 50-50 balls because of the amazing athleticism of Pitts, Grimes and Toney just became 20-80 balls. Fine young receivers, but none of them “freaks.” It was more than just the loss of a football game, as all Gators know. The humiliating 55-20 hammering by Oklahoma was warranted, mostly self-inflicted and is rapidly becoming a referendum on opting out. “Opting out? What is that?” you may ask. “Isn’t that just a euphemism for quitting?” And you would be partially correct. Therein lies the conundrum, one that has me rethinking the okay-ness of such an act: Leaving the team voluntarily to protect self-interests. Let me get this on the record right now – nothing I have written or will write here in any way, shape or form should be construed as an excuse for such an embarrassing loss, because the Sooners were impressive and are to be congratulated. I’ve already got them pencilled in my Top 4 for 2021. In the autopsy, however, what should we write on the death certificate? And the reverse engineering of Kyle Trask’s transformation will be forever be a mystery. Where did that other guy go? Disparaged or discouraged Gator fans just had to reach down in the liquor cabinet for New Year's, eschewing the Dewar’s or J&B or Crown Royal, and grab that bottle labeled “Bad Medicine” and take a big swig. It’s going to be a long off-season. Particularly bitter for Gator fans is the inability to grasp this new term “opt out,” which is being touted as a “smart business decision,” but feels to most fans like a broken vow. If there is a true bond among teammates, where does it say, “I’m with you all the way, unless it benefits me to leave early.” There’s no “I” in team, but there’s no “U” in Opt, either. On the other hand, I get why these young men and their families want to take the money at a time like this as opposed to playing in the Walla Walla Washington Washing Machine Bowl. However, changes for college football are long overdue. And how about these dunderheads overlording the game -- please waking up from your two-year snooze! It’s long past due time for expanding the playoffs – at least doubling it to eight, maybe to 10 or 12 – so the post-season can become relevant again. Every coach I know agrees with me that if there’s a playoff spot awaiting in the Orange or Sugar, or Rose, or Fiesta or Chick-Fil-A—or whatever bowl—there will be little or no opting out. There may not be a “U” in Opting, but there IS a “Play” implied in Playoff. Where do we go from here after such an epic reversal of fortunes? Older folks will revert back to the “Siesta at The Fiesta,” the 52-24 dismantling of Steve Spurrier’s unbeaten 1995 team by Nebraska. After such a humiliating showing, Spurrier’s team came back to win Florida’s first national championship the following season. In typical Trask fashion, he had no excuses and only good things to say, including about his future – and past. Yet chose not to make an announcement on the NFL Draft at the time. “It's been a crazy journey here. I got really nothing else to say," Trask commented after the game. "It's just been a wild ride, and I've enjoyed every second of it. Like I said before, this isn't the way you want to go out, but when I look back on all the memories and friendships I made here, it's all worth it." Not wanting to draw attention away from what backup QBs Emory Jones and Anthony Richardson did in his place, Trask waited until the next day to announce his decision about the NFL Draft, revealing he would be pursuing his dream and leaving school without his sixth year. In a heartfelt video over two minutes long, the normally quiet Trask poured his heart out in thanks to Gator Nation. In the irony of ironies, for the first time in his 22 games as a starter, Trask didn’t have a touchdown pass and couldn’t add to his total of 43 this season. Yet first-time player Anthony Richardson, the big, strong true freshman from Gainesville, Eastside, did. Committed Florida fans woke up on the last day of 2020 feeling like there was an eclipse of the sun because it looked so dark. But there was also a little of light peeking through the ashes. Dan Mullen, spinning it forward, said “The future is bright” for Gator football. Good. Bring it on. And get the hell out of here, 2020.